U2 Announces Las Vegas Sphere Dates

The wait is over for U2 fans.

The band announced five dates in September and October for “U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere” in Las Vegas. The five initial shows are set for Sept. 29-30 and October 5 and 7-8. 

The concerts will be themed around the 1991 “Achtung Baby” album (with the “UV” in the show’s title referring to the album track “Ultraviolet”).

“We’re in the process of developing all of the visual aspects of the show. And we have decided to make “Achtung Baby” the centerpiece, but we will be doing other songs as well,” U2 guitarist The Edge told Variety. “I would say we’re probably gonna be referencing “Zoo TV” in some of the visuals. You know, when “Zoo TV” first came out, it was totally new, groundbreaking. No one had ever done anything like that before. But some of that has become just de rigeur in the industry, in terms of the visuals supporting concert performances. And it’s just become part of the regular furniture.”

He continued: “But actually, when we started to reapply it to the demo, the big demo that you went to the other day, we realized that actually there were brand new things to be done that you can only ever do in this venue with this size of immersive screen. So I would say we’re excited that we can use the facility as it was designed to be used from time to time, which is immersive cinema, and really transport our audience to some other place, some other time.”

The shows will not include drummer Larry Mullen Jr., who is taking a medical leave from the band for surgery. Bram van den Berg, a 40-year-old drummer of the Dutch pop-rock band Krezip, will fill in behind the kit.

Tickets start at $140, with “all-in” pricing, setting the price tag on tickets, fees included. The promoter is promising that 60% of the available tickets for the spectacular will be priced under $300, although premium seats will also be part of the equation.  Capacity at the venue, with a modest standing GA area in front, will be around 20,000 each night. 

To obtain tickets, prospective buyers will be required to register here for a Verified Fan presale from today through Wednesday morning; on Thursday, the presale will open up to fans who are selected to receive an access code.